I have noticed a general bitterness on the big name ham websites. It's not 100% of course, but too many have nothing useful to say, so they do what they know: throw trash and break things. This behaviour is perhaps normal for baboons, but for (mostly) adults in a 'technical hobby/service', speaks poorly of ham radio in general. On the air, especially in CW and maybe some voice, I find a different type of ham from that found on the internet forums - you know ; actual radio operators. Other than contests, which are nothing other than an electro-magnetic 'social disease', most CW operators are polite and actually want to communicate. I also find that those who do at least some building and who made the time to actually understand a little bit about how radio works, procedures used , have things they enjoy OTHER THAN HAM RADIO and engage in at least some healthy degree of personal hygiene are more balanced in their conversation , even with opposing ideas.

This website is an enjoyable harbor.

>RadioRay ..._ ._

"When we cannot do the good we would, we must be ready to do the good we can." ~ Matthew Henry

Agreed, and I'll name names. RadioReference.com for one. Granted, a lot of hams were retired before the Internet became a social forum, and many lack online social skills. On the air, I've experienced the same as you on all bands and modes. As in any group, it takes all kinds, but thankfully the rational thinking beings outnumber the non-thinking ones. And you can always adjust the frequency ;)

I'll go so far as to say that lacking social skills goes with the (ham) territory.

Asperger's syndrome{aggression, compulsive behavior, fidgeting, impulsivity, social isolation, social awkwardness,...}. A friend, who is an engineer like me, taught computers at a special needs school for kids with Asperger's. Before he started work there they gave him a book on the subject. It was enlightening. He said to some level, it describes about half the engineers he knows. I agree. In a community of technically oriented people, like hams, you're going to see a higher percentage of "Aspy" behavior. Plus, lots of hams are old guys with sore joints and bad digestion, so they're going to be cranky. ;)

I don't spend much time on ham forums, and when I do it's only 2; this oasis and I'll read articles and reviews on eHam.net (I stay away from the comment sections). After Ray's and NCGD's comments I don't think I'll change my reading habits any time soon :)

I couldn't agree more, I can't recall ever reading a vitriolic, hateful, name calling, smart ass comment on here such as is commonly found on other ham forums. Sure, we've debated and disagreed on subjects from time to time but it's always done respectfully, life would be boring as hell if everyone agreed on everything all the time. I think the main reasons we have such a helpful, friendly atmosphere is; 1 - this is a very small group in comparison to the big ham sites so statistically we'll have a smaller number of the type of members who would troll just to stir the pot and; 2 - simply from the name of the site, Radiopreppers.com, the forum is somewhat limited in the subject material we usually discuss which tends to attract like minded members. To sum up, this is a great bunch of folks and we should all thank Gil for providing this sanctuary.

Someone did once tell me I was a plant on these forums by the government to monitor you actions. But he left, and I don't engage as much as I used to on social media, because like you said, there's something about AR and online discussions.